The Portland Board of Public Education will hold a ceremony to
inaugurate its newest members on Monday, Dec. 1 at 4 p.m. in Portland
City Council Chambers at Portland City Hall.
The board will
inaugurate two new members who won seats in the Nov. 4 election:
Stephanie S. Hatzenbuehler, the new District 4 representative; and John
M. Eder, who was elected to an at-large seat.
Also inaugurated
will be Marnie S. Morrione, who was re-elected to serve a third term as
the District 5 school board representative. Board members’ terms run for
three years.
At-large school board member Sarah Thompson, the
current school board chair, was chosen unanimously for a second one-year
term as board chair at a caucus on November 18. An official vote for
school board chair will take place at the inauguration.
Thompson
said, “I welcome the new board members and look forward to working
collaboratively with them and all board members to ensure the success of
the Portland Public Schools. Student achievement is the district’s
primary objective and, working together as a team, the board and
superintendent will set the stage for an increase in student
achievement.”
Three student representatives also will be
inaugurated at Monday’s ceremony: Sophie VanDerburgh of Casco Bay High
School; Sahra Ahmed of Deering High School; and John Phan of Portland
High School.
Student reps serve one-year terms and are elected to
carry the student voices of their schools to the board, even though
they don’t have official voting powers. The student reps keep the board
and the public apprised of events and issues happening in the high
schools.
Board Chair Sarah Thompson